The Philadelphia 76ers return from the All-Star break to host the Atlanta Hawks while trying to get back in the win column. Prior to the break, the Sixers lost two straight games to the Portland Trail Blazers and New York Knicks by a combined 66 points, with the latter game featuring a nearly 50-point margin. The Hawks lost their last three games prior to the break, so both teams will be looking to start fresh.
Who: Atlanta Hawks (26-30) at Philadelphia 76ers (30-24)
When: 7:00 p.m. EST
Where: XFinity Mobile Arena, Philadelphia, Pa.
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia, NBA League Pass
The Sixers start their push for the playoffs minus Joel Embiid. Despite his impressive stats and the surprising amount that he has played this season, it was disappointing to see he didn't make the All-Star team, but considering this injury, it also makes sense. For Embiid, who missed the last two games before the break, the rest was much needed, and the hope is that the shin issue isn't a lingering injury or something that gets worse over time.
Philadelphia will have Tyrese Maxey, fresh off an All-Star start, as well as VJ Edgecombe, who was the MVP of the Rising Stars game at the festivities. Both players showed the rest of the league and its fans that the future is bright in Philadelphia.
For the team, and most importantly, head coach Nick Nurse, they'll have to balance their lineups while Embiid is in and out of games. After the disaster at the trade deadline, the Sixers brought back Cam Payne to fill in some of the void left by Jared McCain. While the Sixers' defense has been middle of the pack, they've been allowing teams to shoot lights out from beyond the three-point line lately, and that has to come to an end.
The Hawks will be an interesting team throughout the remainder of the season after moving Trae Young and Kristaps Porzingis at the deadline, but they brought back CJ McCollum, Jonathan Kuminga, Buddy Hield, Jock Landale, and Corey Kispert. They're currently in 10th place in the Eastern Conference, although they're just above the Bulls and Bucks, so it could be rough as the season winds down.
For now, the Hawks will rely on Jalen Johnson and Nickeil Alexander-Walker for scoring, while McCollum will provide the younger team with much-needed veteran leadership that has been lacking in the past.
The Hawks will have some options over the next few seasons, but they may be limited, as they don't have many draft picks. They'll need to use the cap space they'll have this summer to bring in some free-agent pieces.
The Maxey and Edgecombe show will continue this season until one of them breaks down from the amount of minutes they're playing, combined with their style. Both seem to have unlimited energy, but with Edgecombe already at 50 games, it'll be interesting to see how he holds up over the remainder of the season.
For Maxey, getting quality rest, in game, will be the key. Hopefully, despite the All-Star game, Maxey was able to get some rest, as he's looked like his legs haven't been under him the past few weeks.
Based on his post-practice comments from Wednesday, Maxey is
"I feel great man," Maxey said. "I feel really good. Like today, playing, my three-ball feels really good. My legs feel really good. I'm ready to start the second half."
More Adem Bona and Andre Drummond are on the menu for tonight, while Quentin Grimes is no longer on the injury report as he had battled illness prior to the break. If Grimes can regain some of the form he had last season and early this season, it will give the Sixers the punch they envisioned before the start of the year.
Finally, with Jabari Walker and Dominick Barlow having been converted to full contracts, they should be able to concentrate more on impressing on the floor, despite the fact that they've both been huge for the team so far. The pressure of the two-way contract doesn't appear to have bothered either of them, but there could be another level to their games that they can achieve, knowing that they're financially secure.
Sixers 117 - Hawks 108
